Thursday, 22 May 2008

Preparation Time: 25 minIngredients: (click on image to enlarge)6 Chicken drumsticks4 tblsp yogurt2 tbslp tomato pureeJuice of 1 lemon1 tsp red chilli powder3 tblsp Chinese 5 spice powder (widely available in Chinese stores)Salt to taste1 tsp cane sugar8 to 10 saffron threads soaked in 2 tblsp warm waterCrushed Black pepper3 tblsp Olive OilMethod:Clean the chicken drumsticks, the skin can be taken off if desired; long slants are knifed into the drumsticks just on the top so the marinade can seep in deep.

To prepare the marinade, blend the remaining ingredients in a large bowl and apply evenly to the chicken drumsticks and allow this marinade to stay on for about 2 hours.

Grill in the oven at 200 o c or gas mark 3 for 20 min. Serve along with the Mint Quinoa Salad.

Method:Wash the Quinoa well in warm water till the water runs clear. Bring the 2 cups of water to boil, add a pinch of salt and the stock cube and the quinoa should be boiled until it becomes translucent in colour. Make sure the grain does not boil for too long and is still crunchy in taste. This should take about 10 min. Meanwhile, in a large bowl bring together the finely chopped mint, tomato, raisin and grapes; add some salt, pepper and the boiled quinoa. Mix it very carefully so as to not break the grain. Adjust your seasoning, garnish with mint and serve. It goes well with all kinds of roast meats or fish.

Sunday, 25 November 2007

This is the first recipe posted by me. It is an all time favourite, especially during weekends. The apple and mango salad is heavily influenced by Thai cuisine. This is a tangy and spicy salad. The garbanzo pilaf is inspired by Spanish food and it blends well with the rich taste of grilled salmon.The recipe is for 2 people. Have fun and enjoy your meal and let me know how the meal turned out for you by emailing me at sanjanadaswani@gmail.com

Cut the Apple, Mango and Onion into thin long strips. Add to that, half the bunch of rocket leaves. Add salt to taste then finger mix it. Lay everything out in a small bunch in the center of the plate and circle this with the remaining rocket leaves, like I have done in the picture. Prepare the dressing by adding lime juice to a bowl, add some salt, sliced fresh red chilli, brown sugar and mix this with a spoon till the sugar is dissolved. Pour the dressing over the salad mix and serve.

Method:Heat 2 tblsp olive oil in a pan, add the garlic, fry until golden brown, add the chopped onions, let it turn pink then add the red chillies and chopped parsley, add the garbanzos along with the water that it has been boiled in (should not be more than1/4 cup water) and cook it for a just a few minutes leaving in some of the sauce.

Rice: Heat 3 tblsp of olive oil in a pan then add the rice. Melt the stock cubes in 2 cups of water and add it to the rice pan with a pinch of salt. Remember that the stock cubes tend to be salty. Allow the rice to cook for 15 min. Add the saffron threads which previously have been soaked in warm water to the rice while it is cooking. Soon as the rice is ready the cooked garbanzos can be added.

Serve the rice in neat cakes. Place it first in a large bowl or cup, neatly levelled then upturn it on your serving plate so it forms a cake. Add sliced olives on top as a garnish and serve.

Place the tomato, potato and zucchini rings with the salmon steak in a baking dish.

Add 5 tblsp of Olive Oil to a pan, slice the garlic very thin then add that to the olive oil and fry until it is golden brown, add the dried red chilli. Add some salt to the olive oil. Pour this olive oil mixture over the salmon steak and vegetables that are in the baking dish. Grill this at 200 deg C or gas mark 4 for about 20 min. Once you are ready to serve the fish, heat 1 tblsp of oil in a pan and add mustard seeds to this, then allow the seeds to crack. Add curry leaves and spinach to this and let it cook for a minute only. Place the spinach on the serving plate and then the grilled salmon on top with the tomato, potato and zucchini garnish around it.